Bronco Trail App - Killed?

Yup looks like it is all dead now.

Ford really should have collaborated with any one of the major mapping companies instead of killing it off.

They could have had a killer Bronco specific app that worked, and worked great if they wanted.

Guess they didn’t want to spend the cash..

Bummer! 🥺

Ford Pass app has air pressure… just not where you expect…
1. Select Vehicle
2. Select service at bottom of screen
you should see something like this…

Ford killing the app is a shame. When they first announced it I was all for it. It appeared that it would have all the greatest capabilities that we all would have wanted.
For Ford to kill it off means that a bean counter got involved and that was the end of the app. To make it work correctly would have just taken more dollars and Ford has plenty of those to waste.

the poacher

Ford killing the app is a shame. When they first announced it I was all for it. It appeared that it would have all the greatest capabilities that we all would have wanted.
For Ford to kill it off means that a bean counter got involved and that was the end of the app. To make it work correctly would have just taken more dollars and Ford has plenty of those to waste.

It's not just the dollars, but the time. Trying to catch up with the likes of Trails Offroad and OnX would have taken them YEARS. Just getting the features they had to work properly would have probably taken a long time as well. Since there were now really good commercial apps available, someone obviously decided to pull the plug. It's a shame really that they didn't just partner with one of the mapping apps like OnX. The trouble was that the integration of OnX into the Bronco's computers was going to be a PITA, and again, probably take a while to accomplish. Which is a shame, since those were the features I was really looking forward to. Also, I believe that the Ford trail app was dependent on Sync, and Sync's future is, shall we say, limited. So I think that when you wrap it all together, it didn't make any sense to continue.

Well, also don’t forget that’s it’s an app that has to follow Apple and googles rules and all.
It is a shame that Ford gave up on it rather than integrate it better. Maybe they’ll add it to the ford app. So much potential to be more than just a vehicle remote.

JoergH

It's not just the dollars, but the time. Trying to catch up with the likes of Trails Offroad and OnX would have taken them YEARS. Just getting the features they had to work properly would have probably taken a long time as well. Since there were now really good commercial apps available, someone obviously decided to pull the plug. It's a shame really that they didn't just partner with one of the mapping apps like OnX. The trouble was that the integration of OnX into the Bronco's computers was going to be a PITA, and again, probably take a while to accomplish. Which is a shame, since those were the features I was really looking forward to. Also, I believe that the Ford trail app was dependent on Sync, and Sync's future is, shall we say, limited. So I think that when you wrap it all together, it didn't make any sense to continue.

No question that time is a big cost and you are correct that trying to create something to rival OnX or Gaia would have been a huge step up. But, out of the gate they should have partnered with one of these two companies and then they would have been able to live up to their promises. As the saying goes, "it is better to under sell and over preform" then what Ford ended up with, "over sell and under perform".
As to your comments about Sync, time will certainly tell as to whether they are able to keep it up to date and as capable as the competion. As of right now, they are doing quite well with it, imho.

the poacher

No question that time is a big cost and you are correct that trying to create something to rival OnX or Gaia would have been a huge step up. But, out of the gate they should have partnered with one of these two companies and then they would have been able to live up to their promises. As the saying goes, "it is better to under sell and over preform" then what Ford ended up with, "over sell and under perform".
As to your comments about Sync, time will certainly tell as to whether they are able to keep it up to date and as capable as the competion. As of right now, they are doing quite well with it, imho.

I agree, it was a HUGE mistake not to partner with one of the big offroad mapping programs. Personally, I think that they bit off moe than they could chew with the Trail App.

I'm not the biggest fan of Sync, but it's OK. For me, I just use it to "host' Apple CaPlay. Ford has announced that it will be moving away from Sync. Check out this article for some of the details: https://fordauthority.com/2024/01/next-generation-ford-infotainment-system-officially-revealed/

JoergH

I agree, it was a HUGE mistake not to partner with one of the big offroad mapping programs. Personally, I think that they bit off moe than they could chew with the Trail App.

I'm not the biggest fan of Sync, but it's OK. For me, I just use it to "host' Apple CaPlay. Ford has announced that it will be moving away from Sync. Check out this article for some of the details: https://fordauthority.com/2024/01/next-generation-ford-infotainment-system-officially-revealed/

Damn, I like the fact that the new "digital experience" will allow "customers will be able to download separate features for both the instrument cluster and infotainment screens".
A shame that it will most likely not be backwards compatible. Thanks for sharing the link, an interesting read.

the poacher

Damn, I like the fact that the new "digital experience" will allow "customers will be able to download separate features for both the instrument cluster and infotainment screens".
A shame that it will most likely not be backwards compatible. Thanks for sharing the link, an interesting read.

As quirky as SYNC is, its better than a lot of OEM systems out there. I can see dropping the NAV functionality as many if not most folks default to our phones for mapping anyway.

If you use an Android phone the “digital experience” will look and feel very familiar. Those of us with iPhones will have a bit of a learning curve, but it’s pretty intuitive. I’m going to assume the ability for the system to connect to CarPlay will remain. This system looks very much like a third party system I put into my granddaughter’s Mazda3

I had wondering why it didn't work.

I feel like these were offerings as part of the purchase price, and its a shame that we paid for a service and it gets cut. The same thing happened on my Powerboost Ford App, used to be able to monitor the generator data, and then they removed it. Used to be able to monitor your loads and gas consumption while in generator mode...pretty handy when powering the house or camper.
I wonder if they cut the similar smart functions for the lightning like the powerboost and bronco.

Agree with all above. It seems that they assumed so few folks used it, very few realized it was the victim of a silent assassination. Cost effective. 😔

Hope they at least notified next of kin.

I might be in the minority here, but do we really need a Bronco specific app?
I think just running On-X or Gaia is fine on it's own.
Let them do what the do best, let Ford stick to what they do best.

And if you want to copy the Badge Of Honor type thing, there's a cool side called Tred Cred that has patches & stickers for trails, National Parks/Forests, Cities, States & Highways you've traveled to.

jtgensler

I might be in the minority here, but do we really need a Bronco specific app?
I think just running On-X or Gaia is fine on it's own.
Let them do what the do best, let Ford stick to what they do best.

And if you want to copy the Badge Of Honor type thing, there's a cool side called Tred Cred that has patches & stickers for trails, National Parks/Forests, Cities, States & Highways you've traveled to.

I agree that OnX and Gaia is a much better app for trail mapping but it was kinda neat to see the vehicle data on the video.

I could never get it to work properly and those that could, would have issues at some point. Too buggy which I think caused its ultimate demise.

jtgensler

I might be in the minority here, but do we really need a Bronco specific app?
I think just running On-X or Gaia is fine on it's own.
Let them do what the do best, let Ford stick to what they do best.

And if you want to copy the Badge Of Honor type thing, there's a cool side called Tred Cred that has patches & stickers for trails, National Parks/Forests, Cities, States & Highways you've traveled to.

OnX is a better app, the Bronco app was great at real time tire pressure when airing up/down.

I think the app was approached with great intentions, and being able to interact directly with the bronco systems would have been amazing. Moving on…